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Whenever one is looking to purchase a smartphone, it's always a difficult decision for first-time buyers as to which operating system they'd prefer to use.

Do they want to use the Apple-sanitised, timeless and application-rich iOS? Do they value the customisation and freedom offered by Android? Do they want to try out the relatively-new, Metro-saturated Windows Phone 8? Of course, veteran smartphone owners rarely have this issue, as they'll usually stand by one operating system, but for new smartphone owners, it's an exciting world of pick-and-choose.

Enough of this meaningless introduction, however:

• What smartphone operating system are you currently using?
• Have you used other smartphone operating systems? If so, which do you prefer?
• Why do you prefer this operating system over others?

I'm using iOS at the moment, but I'm not really enjoying it. It's starting to get very stale after almost four years of near-continuous use in some way, shape or form. I did have a phone that was running Android — Ice Cream Sandwich, to be specific — up until a few months ago, and I would have stayed on it if it wasn't such a terrible phone. It was a HTC Sensation: a slow, outdated waste of plastic and glass. As stated, I prefer Android over iOS, and I'll never use Windows Phone for as long as I live — while I'm not in the best financial situation to be purchasing application after application again just for the sake of another operating system, I really enjoy the extent to which Android can be personalised. The fact that it's owned by Google — and thus, tied to its various services — is a nice added bonus. Google rocks.

I use Android personally, and I refuse to use iOS. It's crap. Android is far superior to iOS and there's nothing better than Android in my opinon.

However, Android does have a few problems that originate with the device manufacturers and have a lot to do with manufacturers and cellular carriers who are trying to monetize things as much as they can when they sell these phones. So unfortunately, out of the box, most Android devices are seriously rough. The power in these devices lies not in their raw forms, the way they come out of the box new, their power actually lies in the sheer amount of customization one can perform on the device. With Android, everything is completely modular, and if you don't like some part about it, it can usually be removed and replaced. Users of Android are treated like users, not like idiots.

I use Android, first smartphone OS and probanly last. I don't understand how its so confusing as Isheep say. I started with 2.3 Gingerbread, now 4.1 JB.

I had a iPod touch once, honestly became a paper weight in a few months, their commercials never fancied me anyways.

Now why I want to stick with Android, customization is defiantly a big part of it, and the ease of emulation, google services are core in the os. and its constantly evolving.

i have been considering windows phone, trying out the 8x and 928, and using launcher7 on my device. I can probably switch to WP if they allow a bit more customization, and defiantly apps is what kills it to me.

I've been using a Windows Phone since last June. It's just a few days before the 365th day of my ownership of a Nokia Lumia 900. Mind you, it was bought on-contract just weeks after the developer conference that makes it clear that Windows Phone 7.x devices can't be upgraded to Windows Phone 8.x. However, I buy phones based on what they are able to do right now, and how well they do appointed tasks for me.

Since I use my phone to actually text, receive calls, post social network updates, and general web browsing, and not much else, I figured that I'd work very well with Windows Phone. In fact, you could say that I'm the target audience for that. I don't need to have the latest apps and games on my phone, since I don't see much use for most apps, and the apps that I do want are either already on it, or even exclusive back then (I really like having Office Mobile). As for games, I have a Nintendo 3DS to take care of that. I'm not a fan of smartphone gaming, to be honest, and I've never gotten into it, even with my last Android phone, which was a Samsung Galaxy S. The original one. The hardware in the Galaxy S was apparently failing, with the phone randomly turning off.

I must say, this is probably the most reliable smartphone that I've ever owned. I think I'm the kind of person that values reliability over versatility, so there's that. Being able to see under clear, sunny weather is a very big plus, too. The camera is weak, but I've gotten a mirrorless camera to deal with it.

I don't know whether I'll eventually try out iOS, but I think I'll wait until the next iPod touch refresh to dive in. (I don't have a portable media player, other than an actual FM/AM radio.)

Speaking of trying out Windows Phones running WP8.x, get a Nokia. If not possible, get a HTC. Avoid Samsung, ZTE, and Huawei if possible. Nokia's software is awesome, followed by HTC (by a rather large distance). Samsung's token efforts aren't... pretty compared to what you're getting from Nokia or HTC. (I can get behind Samsung's Windows 8 (sans phone) tablets, though.)

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Speaking of Android, my dad's going to hand down the Galaxy S II he's been using for years to my mum, which is still on a feature phone, since he's getting a Galaxy S IV as a company phone. (Being a higher-up does have its benefits.) I think I'm going to have a time trying out stuff on that later this year.

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Hey, it's Twiggy here. Or Twiggy, if you prefer. I like Servine and Noivern a lot. I'm paired with Kip. I like Katy Perry. I want a Chespin plushie. Also, I'm a total PC geek.

What smartphone operating system are you currently using?
Using Apple's iOS.

Have you used other smartphone operating systems? If so, which do you prefer?
Yes, I've used Android, Windows, iOS and Blackberry's strange system. I prefer iOS.

Why do you prefer this operating system over others?
It's simple, clean and easy to use. Android was ok, I can see why people like it. Too clunky for me (at least the phones I've used it on) Windows + Blackberry = never again. They both were horrible.

I've used most modern day smartphones before, but the only ones that I have more than a few weeks of experience with is iOS and Android, and I think that's great for me because I do consider both of them to be at the top.

I prefer iOS to Android because I like the look and the simplicity of it. I'm not after making it too customized. In fact, when I jailbroke it, I only installed a few design changes and about 4 or 5 tweaks to it, so the high customization factor that people use in the Android vs iOS debate doesn't really apply to me. I think they're both great operating systems.

Myself, I use Android because it's not as locked-down as iOS phones are (I'm not too sure about Windows Phones), mostly in the fact that you don't have to jailbreak to customize your phone, like the unlock screen, fonts, appearance, and whatnot. I had a tablet running 2.3.3 Gingerbread, and I really liked what you could do with Android, and after using iOS a bit, I kinda turned to Android.

Plus, Android is more of a developer's system. The SDK is free, whereas Apple's costs an arm and a leg.

I love Android! It is soo customizable, and there are a lot more free apps so it's more affordable too. Plus certain phones have a strong developer community behind them, so you can upgrade to 4.1 and so on even when support has been discontinued by the manufacturer.

I use Android and Android only. my first smartphone last year ran Android and I've never wanted an iPhone. I really like being able to root, flash custom roms, and customize everything that I couldn't do with iOS or Windows Phone. I also have a lot of paid apps so I wouldn't switch unless Android was dead, which won't happen as it's the dominant force in the Smartphone world due to its flexibility and adaptability.

I've used iOS a few times and it just doesn't appeal to me. I just don't like not being able to customize. My iPhone would be just like everyone else's. And no home screen widgets? No thanks.

• What smartphone operating system are you currently using?
I'm using an Android right now. Got it a few weeks ago.

• Have you used other smartphone operating systems? If so, which do you prefer?
No, but my girlfriend owns a Apple IOS, and tbh. It's not really 'wow'. You don't get what you pay for with Apple, imo.

• Why do you prefer this operating system over others?
Android as always been a good system and the price is really good too. You get what you pay for, unlike Apple. I never tried Windows yet, so I can't comment on that one.

The first ever touchscreen phone I had was the Samsung Tocco. I feel like it's the real precursor to the Galaxies around today.

Now though I'm working with a HTC Wildfire S. While it's a great OS (the customizability, the great free apps and the all round personal feel to it), the phone itself isn't great. I feel like they hadn't exactly gotten everything down yet. The internet randomly completely stops and returns me to the phone's home page, it'll randomly freeze and reset itself, and Google phones are so tied in with Facebook that it's ridiculous. I lost 28MB worth of memory for a bunch of ******* Facebook names to appear in my phonebook. It's just stupid, especially when I'm not a big facebook person to begin with.

In terms of the OS though, I'd prefer is over iOS. By now though I'm so used to the Android version that iOS seems extremely confusing to me when I pick up an iPhone.

I wonder whether we've got people that have Blackberries, people holding onto Symbian, or people getting the "new" Series 40 Touch and "newer" Asha Touch phones. (Series 40 was originally a feature phone OS.) Opinions from people who have these phones can be interesting.

I'm not much of a fan of excessive customization, to be honest. When I had an Android phone, I didn't bother with custom launchers, for example. I'm also hesitant to flash it with some other firmware. It probably influenced me to get a not-Android phone.

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Hey, it's Twiggy here. Or Twiggy, if you prefer. I like Servine and Noivern a lot. I'm paired with Kip. I like Katy Perry. I want a Chespin plushie. Also, I'm a total PC geek.

I use Android and this is my first Smartphone, I've seen mobiles of my friends having iOS, Windows and Android and liked Android the best as it has more free apps, more developers and we can go to more depth of OS files in it which is a crime for iOS devices. And lets Windows be on computer as we cannot see the world properly from the window as small as a phone :p

I'm Android lover and soon a developer :D

I use Android and this is my first Smartphone, I've seen mobiles of my friends having iOS, Windows and Android and liked Android the best as it has more free apps, more developers and we can go to more depth of OS files in it which is a crime for iOS devices. And lets Windows be on computer as we cannot see the world properly from the window as small as a phone :p

Android is the greatest smartphone OS out there. You have a bit more freedom with Android than you have with Apple, so much customization, better features, and you have the option to root it whenever it's possible. I have an Android phone, and it's what I'm sticking with.

I heard Windows Phone is also good...but what turns me away from it was the lack of apps. When it gets more apps let me know, because I wouldn't mind trying it out. :P

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How did the young survive? We're never satisfied, only if I could listen.

I'm currently using two operating systems, only because I have two phones. The first one is my Blackberry Curve, though I have no idea what operating system Blackberry uses. I find the interface really simple and easy to memorize, but there's also my Samsung Galaxy Pocket, which uses Android. I personally prefer Android because of the customization features and the fact that you can download gazillions of apps, but if I had an iPhone, I think Apple's iOS is the best smartphone OS there is.

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“Not everybody is beautiful. I’m tired of hearing that. But everybody has the ability to be. You are as beautiful as the things you do, the words you say, and the intentions of your heart. You are as beautiful as you let yourself become.”

I guess you could call me a regular user of iOS, because I have a 4th Generation iPod Touch.

However, I really want to use Android, because it's more flexible and not as regulated and locked down as iOS is. For example, you can do more with Android such as have special keyboard layouts such as Swype, and even have a broader range of devices. Android is also an open-source operating system, which allows developers to put out a broad range of devices in comparison to Apple, who only puts out different devices by the gigabyte.

I use iOS on my iPod Touch 4th Gen. However I'm contemplating getting a HTC One instead of an iPhone 5 because of the greater storage. Only snag is how much money I've spent on iTunes (mostly music, all DRM-free I think, I didn't get it for a while after my brother did). Android looks cooler, but iOS7 looks like it's going to change all that. Sure, there'll not be the customisation, but I'm not sure I need too much of that.

Currently, iOS 5.0.1. For the sake of Jailbreaking and stuff, I prefer this OS version. It's nice, but my iPhone is outdated, so...I need to upgrade because my GB and RAM needs have skyrocketed.

• Have you used other smartphone operating systems? If so, which do you prefer?

ICE. CREAM. SANDWICH.Dude, ICS 4.0 on my mom's S3 is so legit. I'm like almost ready to jump ship and get me an S3. In fact, null that last part about upgrading my iPhone, I might just get that S3/S4.

• Why do you prefer this operating system over others?

Truthfully, the only thing keeping me is the fact that I've invested so much time into the phone, and the fact that it's Jailbroken. If I happen to nab an iPhone 4/4S, I might not have to get a S3/S4. But...if not, ICS, here I come~~~

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"You are trespassing on Line Ark territory. Pull back immediately...or we will respond with lethal force."

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